Studio Artists Area

Jon George

Recent Works

Statement

The subject matter in my work derives from initial drawings made during excursions to the country – drawing done sitting on a mountain side or in a field – lone cycle journeys made for this purpose in the Massif Central of France or across West Africa to see a rain forest.

Paintings which have evolved from abstract themes where a brush was dragged by walking up a plank, are now concerned with kinetic movement seen in wind, a tree bent, the curve of a hillside or even a wave crashing on the shingle in a stormy night.

In the studio I use materials such as egg tempera, gesso as a ground and pulped paper as a support, which are shaped by hand- see example in ‘Harvesters.’ Recent experiments allow irregular surfaces – as a cave painter would on the un-flat face of the rock.

Printing by hand is as important as painting in my work. I developed a new kind of printing – Castprinting, in which plaster blocks are used and I’ve recently developed an extension of this technique called Photocastprinting. Examples are ‘Hay,’ ‘Vine,’ and ‘St Julien.’

Recently I acquired a large format inkjet printer and am exploring the possibilities of reproduction and translating my work into the digital domain.

As part of our Public Program, I am proposing to create a wild flower meadow, in which children and others may also grow vegetables and herbs. Initially this was intended for the roof and is called GROOF. Groof looks now to be more viable in the derelict yard within the complex of the building. This will involve collaboration with other artists as well as the community.